Technical Field
This disclosure relates to polymeric compositions. More specifically, this disclosure relates to polymeric compositions for the preparation of ionomers.
Background
Ionomers are widely used in the manufacturing of a variety of end-use articles ranging from medical devices to food containers. Ionomers that are copolymers of styrene and methacrylic acid comprise some of the most widely used thermoplastic materials with a range of applications including disposable medical products, food packaging, tubing, and point-of-purchase displays.
Ionomers comprising aromatic moieties interconnected with ionic moieties may provide improved mechanical and/or physical properties when compared to polymers lacking the ionic moieties. Of particular interest are ionomers comprising aromatic moieties with a branched backbone, for example ionomers comprising styrene. While styrenic based polymers typically possess linear backbones, branched styrene-based polymers, which are generally termed branched aromatic ionomers, are desirable as they typically exhibit higher melt strengths than linear congeners at similar melt flows. However, the application of these branched aromatic ionomers can be limited by production difficulties (e.g., gel formation and reactor fouling) as well as end-use processing limitations. Thus, an ongoing need exists for compositions and methodologies for the production of branched aromatic ionomer compositions having improved properties.